pfarif<& of tfte ^^irglr^ Mar^. 41 



clusters upon the branch of a tree, asked Joseph to gather some for 

 lier. He hesitated, and mockingly said — " Let the father of thy 

 child present them to you." Instantly the branch of the Cherry- 

 tree inclined itself to the Virgin's hand, and she plucked from it 

 the refreshing fruit. On this account the Cherry has always been 

 dedicated to tlic Virgin Mary. The Strawberry, also, is specially 

 set apart to the Virgin's use ; and in the Isle of Harris a species 

 of Beans, called Molluka Beans, are called, after her, the Virgin 

 Mary's Nuts. 



At Bethlehem, the manger in which the Infant Jesus was laid 

 after His birth was filled with Our Lddy's Bedstraw ( Galium verum J. 

 Some few drops of the Virgin's milk fell upon a Thistle, which 

 from that time has had its leaves spotted with white, and is known 

 as Our Lady's Thistle (Carduus Marianus). In Germany the Poly- 

 podium vulgare, which grows in clefts of rocks, is believed to have 

 sprung from the milk of the Virgin (in ancient times from Freyja's 

 milk). The Pidmonana is also known as Unser Frauen Milch (Our 

 Lady's Milk). 



When, after the birth of Jesus, His parents fled into Egypt, 

 traditions record that in order that the Virgin might conceal herself 

 and the infant Saviour from the assassins sent out by Herod, 

 various trees opened, or stretched their branches and enlarged their 

 leaves. As the Juniper is dedicated to the Virgin, the Italians 

 consider that it was a tree of that species which thus saved the 

 mother and child, and the Juniper is supposed to possess the 

 power of driving away evil spirits and of destroying magical spells. 

 The Palm, the Willow, and the Rosemary have severally been 

 named as having afforded their shelter to the fugitives. On the 

 other hand, the Lupine, according to a tradition still current 

 among the Bolognese, received the maledictions of the Virgm 

 Mary because, during the flight, certain plants of this species, by 

 the noise they made, drew the attention of the soldiers of Herod 

 to the spot where the harassed travellers had halted. 



During the flight into Egypt a legend relates that certain 

 precious bushes sprang up by the fountain where the Virgin 

 washed the swaddling clothes of her Divine babe. These bushes 

 were produced by the drops of water which fell from the clothes, 

 and from which germinated a number of little plants, each yielding 

 precious balm. Wherever the Holy Family rested in their flight 

 sprang up the Rosa Hicyosolymitana — the Rosa Marias, or Rose of the 

 Virgin. Near the city of On there was shown for many centuries the 

 sacred Fig-tree under which the Holy Family rested. They also, 

 according to Bavarian tradition, rested under a Hazel. 



pfarin«) of tfte ^Irglr^ Mar^. 



In Tuscany there grows on walls a rootless little pellitory 

 {Paridaria), with tin}' pale-pink flowers and small leaves. They 



